


A Realm of Fear

by Crazyeight



Category: Digimon - All Media Types, Digimon Tamers
Genre: F/M, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, Romance, Teen Angst, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-03 17:48:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21183482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crazyeight/pseuds/Crazyeight
Summary: Halloween. A night of ghouls and goblins and digimon. As the Tamers prepare to celebrate the spooky holiday, they find some of the scariest things are the changes life brings.





	1. Chapter 1

The fall air in Shinjuku had a crisp chill to it that was staved off only by the light of the sun. This created a unique blend of warmth and cold that left Takato feeling quite comfortable and energetic. Seated on the concrete steps that led to his old, childhood hideout, he played around on his digital tablet, listening to the sounds of sniffing and crunching leaves as, off to the side, a crimson-scaled dinosaur with a white belly broken only by a black hazard sign on its chest, investigated its surroundings, nose snuffling and testing for scents of all kinds, but most especially, Takato knew, that of squirrels. Breaking away from the tablet screen, he watched the dragon – a digital life form known as a digimon – smiling softly.

"Find anything good yet, boy?"

"All kinds of things," the dinosaur beamed, raising an acorn between his claws. "But I still haven't found that box of bread I buried three years ago."

"That breads as good as fossilized by now, Guilmon," piped in a voice belonging to a long-eared, rabbit-like digimon with cream-colored fur and a solitary horn on its forehead. "Either that or it's already gone on a trip through Impmon's digestive tract."

"So, you're saying I should either go to a museum to find it or check Impmon's plumbing?" Guilmon asked with a laugh. The rabbit digimon cocked his head to one side, his round, black eyes taking on an uncertain look.

"You know, I'm not so sure I like this whole thing where Guilmon is the one making jokes. Especially ones that actually land for a change."

"Our little boy's growing up, Terriermon," nodded a dark-haired boy leaning on the hideout's iron gate, reading an email on the screen of his phone. "Guess it had to happen sooner or later."

"I guess so… It's kinda creepy though. Should I start expecting Calumon to be wearing a mohawk next and wearing a leather jacket? Shaking down kids for their lunch money?"

"I'm pretty sure that's a mon that's never going to change," laughed Takato, getting to his feet. "Anyway, I'm all set, Henry. You want to have a look?"

"Sure," the half-Chinese boy nodded, closing up his phone and pocketing it. Taking the tablet, he quickly scanned over its contents, not saying a word yet. Takato drummed his fingers against the sides of his pants, a sliver of tension making its way through him as he watched Henry's reaction closely.

_So far nothing yet, _he thought. _If it's bad, he would have said something by now, so that's good…right?_

He clung hard to such hopes. If he could at least show that he was improving…

Finally, Henry handed the tablet back to him, an apologetic look on his face. Takato felt his hopes dash almost immediately.

_"Still _no good, huh?"

"Sorry, Takato," Henry shrugged. "I mean, you've improved, but you're trying to do too much at once. Some of the things you're doing are a little _too _advanced for you."

"I was just trying to follow all the advice you gave me," Takato sighed in exasperation, running a hand through his hair. "You walked me through the steps, what am I doing wrong?"

"How about you try learning to walk before you run, okay?" Henry said, clapping a hand on his friend's shoulder and giving it a comforting squeeze. "You've only started doing this a couple weeks ago. Start back with the basics and work on that until you've mastered them. The way you're going right now, I don't think you'll get very far."

"I guess you're right," Takato sighed, glancing at the mess of numbers on his tablet – a little piece of programming he had been trying to make of late. "Man, I really thought I was starting to get this stuff."

"You would if you could just be patient," Henry smiled. "You know, I've never asked why you want to learn to be a programmer. It kind of seems to have come out of the blue with you, and it's a little 'last minute,' all things considered."

Takato swallowed, but before he could answer, a voice hailed them from down the steps.

"Hey! Are you two on a date or something?"

Turning, the group found a familiar, redhaired girl in a dark leather jacket climbing the concrete stairs, violet eyes flashing mischievously in the autumn sun. Fluffing out his ears, Terriermon planted his tiny paws on his hips and giggled.

"Of course not, Rika! Henry's married to his computer!" Terriermon turned towards the others, giving Takato a foreboding look. "Seriously. That keyboard of his has _seen _things."

"How about we _not _talk about that?" Henry blushed while leaning down and giving his partner a tap on the head with his knuckles.

"Momentai, Henry. I was just letting Rika know she doesn't have to worry about you as her competition."

"Competition for what now?" Rika asked, climbing the last step and looking down at the digital troublemaker quizzically.

"Not what," Terriermon giggled. "More like _who."_

"You're lucky that I'm not in the mood to send you into orbit, rabbitmon," Rika grunted in annoyance, causing Terriermon to sit up straight.

"Whoa, hold on! First Guilmon makes jokes that land, and now you don't want to hurt me? What kind of alien invasion is going on here?"

"The kind that seems to be about messing with your mind. I…" Rika paused, glancing at Takato, who was presently staring at her, his eyes in a trance. A pinkish shade touched her cheeks and she unconsciously closed her leather jacket tighter about herself. "What's up? Do I have peanut butter on my nose or something?"

"H-Hah?" Takato blinked, shaken out of whatever it was that had captured his attention so completely. Where Rika's blush had been pink, a bright red rose up in his face and he hastily looked away. "N-No. I was just…" He paused, looking back at her. Rika fixed him with a hard stare, clearly indicating that he was to tell her what was going on or else face the consequences. "Um… Your hair. You've changed it."

Now it was Henry's turn to blink as he looked and saw what it was that had captivated Takato. The change was subtle though not discreet, knowing Rika as they did. A slight brushing of her bangs to one side. Not precisely what one would call unique, but when it came to the self-proclaimed _Digimon Queen, _it was an unusual style and not at all in keeping with how she normally tended to portray herself.

"Oh, yeah," Rika brushed at her bangs, doing her best to appear nonchalant about the observation. "I wanted to try something different today. So what? It's no big deal."

"I bet Takato thinks you look pretty though," Terriermon smirked, leaning forward and balancing himself on his front paws. The pink shade on Rika's cheeks darkened ever so slightly, yet she turned toward Takato with a flat stare, as if waiting for the boy to either confirm or deny the accusation. He squirmed under her scrutiny, but he didn't retreat from it. Instead, he threw on a cheesy, embarrassed smile and rubbed the back of his head as he felt the heat of his flushed face poking holes through his skin.

"It…It really does look good on you," he admitted nervously. A small smile melted Rika's face, forcing her to lose her flat, rigid stare. Her blush grew, but the pair held each other's eyes through it. Slowly, her jacket drew back and the girl's posture relaxed a little.

"Thanks, Takato," she said softly, to which Terriermon looked up at Henry, still balancing on his front paws.

"Told you it was more like who."

"I never doubted your ability to cause trouble for a second," Henry said, keeping his tone as neutral as possible while once again checking his email.

"Hey! Momentai! If I really wanted to cause trouble, I'd have said that Rika asking about whether the two of you dating was really just her wondering which of you was the top and which was the…"

"How about we stop that train of thought right there before it digivolves me into something that will hurt you, rabbitmon," Rika interrupted as she made her way over to Takato and sat down next to him.

"That's fine," Terriermon giggled. "I'll just hop onto a new train later when you're not paying attention."

"Great," Rika grumbled, folding her arms together and hunching forward. "So what are you two doing here?"

"What are _you _doing here?" Terriermon asked, a knowing tone to his voice as he did a little cartwheel.

"Um… We're here because Jeri said she had something she wanted to talk to us about," said Takato before Terriermon's words could set off another round between him and Rika. "Did she call you too?"

"Mn," Rika nodded. "Refused to say what she wanted to talk to me about unless it was face to face."

"Same here," Henry said with a slight frown, glancing up briefly from his phone. "It was really weird. Like she was planning some big surprise."

"Ugh." Rika rolled her eyes. "Whose birthday is it _this _time?"

"No one's," Terriermon giggled, planting his long, appendage-like ear on the ground and using it to push himself up. "I'm sure she just wanted to make sure she could pry Henry away from his computer." He angled himself on his ear so that he was facing the half-Chinese boy. "Seriously Henry. Your seat is so conformed to your butt now, you've left a permanent imprint."

"Terriermon…"

"What? Admit it, Henry! Even _I _hardly ever see you away from that thing and you're my Tamer! It's like you only get away from it to take a leak or teach Takato how to be more like you, and that's kinda depressing!"

"Hey!" Takato protested, and Rika looked at the boy curiously.

"You're trying to be more like Henry?"

"He said he wanted to learn how to do programming," Henry shrugged.

"Why?" Rika lifted an eyebrow. "This isn't some harebrained scheme to get popular with the girls at your school or something, is it?"

"Oh please," Terriermon laughed. "Why would he do that when he's already got you?"

Takato suddenly found himself choking on air while Rika's eyes grew wide with shock, bright red blooming across both their features.

"I strike when your guard is down," Terriermon giggled, pointing an ear at the pair, a note of pride in his voice. "Like the _shadows!"_

"Henry?" Rika began, her voice thick with unspoken threats of violence. "Do you have any objections to me putting your partner in a body cast?"

"No," Henry replied, not looking up from his cellphone. "I'm sure the world will thank you for your service."

"Wha…?! _Henry! _Sheesh! It really _is _an alien invasion, isn't it? I've been abandoned by my own Tamer!"

"How about we not do anything drastic, okay?" Takato interjected as he placed himself between his two friends while behind Rika, Guilmon's head rose up, curious as to what all the commotion was and if he needed to be concerned.

"Yeah, please," Terriermon continued, grateful for Takato's intervention. "Besides, why are you so upset all of a sudden. It's not like Takatomon's going to cheat on you or anything. He's been available for as long as you have."

"You _really _should have gotten off at your last stop," Rika growled, attempting to brush Takato aside, only for the teen to stubbornly root himself in place. Turning her sharp glare at the boy, her violet-colored eyes narrowed to a dangerous edge. "Takato. _Move. _That bunnies got a date with the moon."

"Somehow I don't think that'd do anything," Takato laughed. "I'm pretty sure he's just about the only thing that could talk in space and still be heard."

"Yeah," Terriermon exclaimed before pausing. "Wait, what?"

"Please tell me _that's _not what insulted you," Henry sighed.

"No." Terriermon tapped his chin as though in thought. "I actually think that makes me cooler."

"I'm more than willing to put it to the test," Rika snapped, attempting to push past Takato again. "Takato, will you _stop _blocking me already? Why are you even bothering to protect him?"

"Because violence won't solve anything here?" Takato offered tentatively.

"Only because we've never actually tried," Rika countered. Takato's mind was racing furiously. He had never really been that good at countering the girl's arguments, especially whenever she was pressuring him with her eyes. There was just something about her and the way she looked at him – whether she was angry or otherwise – that caused his brain and mouth to short circuit and turn into a floundering mess. Still, he had one thing that he could count on to act when his brain and mouth couldn't and rarely let him down. His gut instincts. So it was that when Rika again tried to push past him, he moved and wrapped her up in a hug before he could even think about what he was doing.

Silence followed for one, long, tense minute as Rika stood there, trapped in his arms, body rigid and skin burning with warmth as strands of hair on the back of her neck and ponytail tickled Takato's face. His eyes were wide now, practically bulging in their sockets as the enormity of what he was doing came crashing down on him. While he and Rika hugged on occasion, he had never actually attempted to restrain her physically before. Yet here he was, doing exactly that, and swiftly realizing that he didn't dare let her go for once he did…she would kill him.

"Takato?" she began, her voice soft, but tense. Takato had half a second in which he noticed that her scent smelled like cherry blossoms after a storm and that her heartbeat was banging awfully fast all of a sudden. "What are you doing?"

"Um… Something really dumb," he admitted, a blush rising on his features. "Something I didn't think through."

"So I gathered," he felt Rika nod against him. "Now why aren't you letting me go?"

"I think we all know how _that's _going to work out if he does," Terriermon said. In his mind's eye, Takato imagined Terriermon drawing one of his limb-like ears across his throat.

_Yep. I'm dead. I'm _so _dead now…_

Over by Guilmon, he saw a golden-furred, fox like creature – Rika's partner, Renamon – suddenly phase into view next to the dinosaur, arms folded across her chest. She didn't say a word, yet looked quite amused by the sight that she was seeing.

Takato found it rather disquieting that by appearing where she did, she _wanted _him to see that she was amused by the whole ordeal.

"Let me go, Gogglehead," Rika said, this time no longer asking and reverting to her old childhood nickname for him – the one she used when she wanted to make sure she had his attention. Sensing the threat in her voice, Takato found himself inadvertently tightening his hold about her. He felt the heat emanating from her suddenly double in intensity.

"I'm seeing it, but I don't believe it…" Terriermon whispered, seemingly in awe. "It really _did _have to do with who."

"I'm _serious, _Gogglehead," Rika reiterated, her voice taking on an edge now, her breathing coming faster. Distantly, he felt her heart begin to pick up its pace. _"Let. Go."_

"Will you promise to not hurt Terriermon?" he asked. There was a slight pause in which the only sound that he heard was that of the wind and her breathing. Then came a moment where she grew tense all at once as she took a deep breath…and then came a nervous laugh.

"Not worried about yourself?" Takato stiffened as he felt her arms now rise up at his waist, hands slipping into his open coat. "Because I'm thinking you should be."

_Oh no… _he thought in growing horror at the sudden mischievous sound to her voice. The tense anger was gone. The nervousness was gone, and both were replaced by something else. Something that saw an opportunity present itself and fully intended to take it.

"W-Well, I kind of hoped we'd start with Terriermon and work our way down to me, but I think that's out the window now."

_Oh please, oh please, don't let it be what I think it's going to be…_

Rika's hands came to rest on just under his ribs, and he felt his body attempt to crawl away from her touch. Her fingers drew up like claws, pressing hard, causing his sides to jump slightly. For an instant, Takato had a mental image of a mouse caught in the claws and fangs of a big cat and was only waiting for the end to come.

"Hmmm… I'm thinking you're right about that…" she hummed playfully before a loud cough broke across their 'moment.' Turning in confusion, they saw newcomers, three humans and two more digimon of whom the latter involved a bright pink, tiny, fairy-like creature with a red heart emblazoned on its chest, while the other was a massive bucket of rust-colored android with a thick, heavy body.

"Hey, ah…" began the taller of the humans, a boy with a long, lean face, spiky hair and a wolfish grin. "If you two need to be alone or something, we'd be more than happy to oblige."

"Ugh." And just like that, Rika broke free from Takato and pushed him away. As the brown-haired boy stumbled back a step, realizing she could have escaped at any time she wanted, Rika folded her arms together and studiously ignored him in spite of her beat-red face. "Great timing. What are you doing here, Kazu?"

"I invited him," beamed a brunette girl with amber eyes as she stepped forward. "Just like I did with everyone here."

"Terrific. What are we doing, a reunion tour?" Rika asked, annoyed.

"If you want," the girl giggled, hopping up the final step to join her and giving her a sly, knowing look that Rika promptly ignored. "We could try that at some point."

"We're not going to visit the creepy tunnels are we, Jeri?" Guilmon asked, approaching her with his big, gold-colored eyes with wide worry. Takato smiled sympathetically at him, knowing that the digimon had something of a bad history with the cities flood tunnels, having been first pulled there by a random event from the digital world that birthed him. Still smiling herself at the crimson dinosaur, Jeri reached out and patted him on the head.

"Not if you don't want to, silly," she giggled before turning towards the others. "But speaking of creepy, since you're all here…"

"Huh?" Kazu piped up, looking about. "But what about Ryo?"

"He lives in Fukuoka still, numbskull," Rika growled. "He didn't magically move up here in the last ten seconds. Besides, do you _really _think Mr. Perfect is going to book a flight that far away just because Jeri called him up?"

"It hasn't stopped him before." Kazu folded his arms behind his head. "And what about Impmon? Or Calumon? Don't tell me he got kidnapped again."

"Why don't we just let Jeri tell us what she called us together for?" Henry said, closing up his phone and pocketing it.

"Sounds like someone is in a rush to get back to work."

"Kazu…" began the other boy next to him, a bespectacled, dark-haired youth named Kenta.

"What? I'm just saying what we're all thinking."

"More like what _you're _thinking," Rika sniped.

"Guys, guys!" Takato burst in loudly, a false smile painted on his face to hide his growing frustration with how little was being accomplished here. "Come on. Just let Jeri talk. She wouldn't have called us out here if it wasn't important, so let's just…listen."

"Ahhh… You're no fun anymore," Kazu grumbled, but acceded to his friend's request. All eyes turned toward Jeri, who was still smiling, and did so with a wistful look to her eyes, as though the distraction had been something of a welcome one.

"Ah… Jeri?" Takato prompted, puzzled by her silence.

"Hm? Oh!" Jeri jumped lightly, one hand wrapping itself around the other anxiously and rubbing at her wrist. "Right. Anyway, I was thinking about how Halloween was coming up and I wanted to see if everyone would like to get together for it. We hardly ever see each other for fun anymore and I thought it'd be nice to break away from everything and hang out like we used to. Plus, since we'd be on the streets, you could still patrol like usual, so…"

She trailed off as the others looked at one another questioningly. After a moment, Kazu considered his massive, robotic digimon partner thoughtfully.

"Now that you mention it, I've been kind of thinking of a costume for Guardromon where he was dressed as a flower pot…"

The rust-colored robot turned toward his Tamer with a look of concern in his eyes.

"Kazu, I don't think my circuits will mesh well with soil."

"Don't worry about it," the boy grinned, clapping his partner on his metal hide. "No dirt involved. We just need to make you _look _like a potted plant. Not the real thing."

"Well, that's a relief."

"Can we bring other people?" Kenta asked nervously, adjusting his glasses. Kazu snickered.

"You mean your girlfriend you keep telling me about?"

"Hey! She's real! Come on, Kazu! Don't make fun of me!"

"Of course, you can bring her," Jeri beamed. "I'd love to meet her. From everything you've told me about her, she sounds like a nice person."

"She is," Kenta nodded with a trembling smile of relief. "She's been wanting to meet you guys too, but with the way our schedules have been lately, it's been kind of hard."

The mood sobered at that, a quiet acknowledgement of the changes their lives had gone through these last three years passing between them.

"Well," Kazu grinned, breaking that silence with sudden energy. "Guess we'd better get started! Halloween's only a few days away and a costume like Guardromon's going to take a bit of work. Hey, Chumley!" He turned toward Takato. "Want to lend me a hand with your art skills?"

"Uh… Sorry," Takato replied with a touch of regret, scratching at his cheek. "I've got some things to fix first."

Kazu frowned at that before shrugging.

"Whatever. Don't be a stranger though if you find some time. Like Jeri said, it's been a while. What are you going as, Guilmon?"

"Hm?" Guilmon blinked and looked down at himself. "Gee, I don't know. Maybe I'll go as a cinnamon version of myself? Oh! Or maybe chocolate!"

"Careful," Terriermon giggled. "You get too into it, you might try to crawl into the oven and bake yourself."

"Ohhh…" Guilmon tapped a claw on his chin thoughtfully. "I wonder what that would be like. I bet I'd smell tasty."

"You're crazier than your Guilmon Bread, Chumley. All right. Smell you guys later! Let's go, Guardromon. We've got to get started on your costume!"

"Right behind you!"

As the pair clanked loudly down the stairs, Takato looked over at Jeri. "You know, maybe we should also try making this a costume contest for the digimon. I mean, since Kazu's getting into it and everything…"

"Please," Rika snorted. "We already know who would take first prize at that. Renamon?"

The vulpine digimon approached and a shimmer passed along her form. Her tail shrank into her back and her body shifted, taking on a human shape. Within seconds, the transformation finished, leaving her with red hair done up in a ponytail, a dark leather jacket surrounding a turquoise blue cotton sweater with a white heart on the chest and jeans. Except for the blue eyes, she would have passed as Rika's identical twin sister.

"How do _I _look?" she asked Takato with amusement. Blushing, the boy laughed.

"I think we have a winner."

"You're only saying that because she looks like Rika," Terriermon grumbled. "Just you wait! I'll beat you yet! It takes more than the ability to change your appearance to win a Halloween contest!"

"My, my," Renamon said, shifting her appearance back to her normal self. "It seems the gauntlet has been thrown. Rika?"

The fire-haired girl looked at her partner in bafflement. "You're _really _taking his challenge seriously? What kind of costume do you think that they'll even fit him in?"

"I'll have you know that I have _lots _of costumes to choose from," Terriermon huffed, crossing his tiny arms together.

"Except they're all Princess Pretty Pants outfits from when Suzie used to dress you up," Henry pointed out. Terriermon twitched at that.

"Henryyy… I thought you had my side here!"

"Perhaps we should make this fairer for you," Renamon continued, a small, barely perceptible smirk on her muzzle. "I'll forgo my transformation ability and Henry…" Lifting a claw, she pointed at the half-Chinese Tamer, causing his eyes to snap towards her in surprise. "…will help you find or make a costume more to your liking."

"Hold on, what…?" Henry began, only for Terriermon to lift his ears up in appreciation.

"Ohhh… I see what you mean," he giggled. "Thanks, Renamon! I take back everything I said about how you not having a sense of humor."

"Hang on," Henry interjected, a note of frustration entering his voice. "I've got a lot of work to do still…"

"Then I suppose you should work quickly," Renamon replied, folding her arms together, her posture and tone indicating a clear end to the conversation with all the subtlety of a door being shut. Henry sighed, rubbing the back of his head in exasperation. Smiling, Terriermon hopped onto his shoulder and clung tight to the teen's head with his ears.

"Momentai! All we need to do is make a side trip to a costume store on the way home! Well, sure by side trip I mean Akihabara, but still."

"Terriermon…" Henry sighed as he started to turn away, heading off, already so lost in his thoughts that he missed Guilmon waving goodbye to him.

"Aw nuts," Guilmon's ears wilted at the lack of acknowledgement and the dinosaur plopped his rear down on the dirt ground beside Jeri. "He's busy even when he's not working. Takato… I don't know if I like the idea of you becoming as busy as Henry. What if I never see you again?"

"Don't worry, boy," Takato smiled reassuringly – or at least he _hoped _he appeared to reassuring – patting his partner on the head. "We'll still hang out. I promise."

"That's one thing you're good at," Rika said. "What do you want to be a programmer for anyway? I didn't hear about any of this until today. Doesn't seem like you."

"Oh… Just…stuff," Takato replied evasively, scratching at his cheek while Rika looked unsatisfied with his answer. "I've just been wondering about things like the future and figured I'd give it a shot, you know? I mean, it's starting to come up on us."

"It _is _getting pretty hard," Kenta added with a nod, his expression taking on a more thoughtful appearance before sighing. Forcing a smile on his face in an effort to clear the air, he turned toward Takato. "Hey, are you bringing anyone?"

"Me?" Takato's eyes flickered over at Rika before barking a sudden laugh, a tough of red once more blooming across his cheeks. "N-No. I mean, I haven't asked anyone… I mean…why would… Ow!"

Takato's stammering was abruptly cut off as Rika's hand snaked out and gave his cheek a hard pinch.

"Takato couldn't ask a girl out if his life depended on him," she said, her face hard and devoid of emotion as she retracted her hand.

"Then it's a good thing he has you here, huh?" Jeri giggled, earning her a sharp look from the taller, violet-eyed girl. Not that it did her any good. Jeri was, without a doubt, the one person in the group aside from Renamon that Rika couldn't intimidate no matter what she did.

"Please," Rika grunted, turning away to hide her reappearing blush and folding her arms together. "I'm not somebody's charity case. Gogglehead's going to have to suck it up and actually _talk _to girls for a change if he wants to have a relationship with one."

Takato winced mentally at that, feeling the sharp sting of her words.

"Can't argue with you there," he said, unconsciously adjusting his grip on his tablet. "Anyway, I've…ah…got to get going. I've got some things to take care of and…stuff. So, I'll see you guys on Halloween. Come on, Guilmon."

"See you guys on Halloween," Jeri called, waving at the pair. They waved back as they hurried down the steps before promptly tripping over each other on the last step, tumbling down to the dirt path and landing in a squawking heap. Jeri looked over at Rika, who was doing her best to not appear the least bit worried about their companions.

"Pih?" MarineAngemon asked, looking over at Kenta with concern. The boy laughed.

"They're probably okay, but I guess we should probably check and make sure, huh?"

As the pair trailed after their two friends, Jeri turned toward Rika, who now leaned against the iron bars of their hideout, jacket closed tightly about her, eyes glaring at the brush off to the side.

"I know that look," she began. "I hate it when you do that."

"Rika…"

The fire-haired girl pushed away from the bars with an annoyed grunt.

"I've got to get going too. Catch you later."

"H-Hey! Wait! Why don't I come with you?" Jeri asked, hurrying after her. Moving quickly, she looped an arm around Rika's elbow and pulled her close. "It's been a while. Don't you want to catch up?"

"Jeri…"

"And we don't get to talk that much anymore."

"Yeah… Here's the thing." Trying to be as gentle as possible, Rika disentangled herself from her friend. "I know what you _really _want to talk about, and I…don't, so how about we table that conversation for 'never,' okay?" She gave her friend an apologetic look. "Sorry. I'm just not in the mood now."

Jeri became crestfallen at that, but she nodded, accepting her friend's decision. "Okay," she said. "But… You know…"

"Yeah. I know." Rika attempted to repress the pained expression on her face as she marched down the steps, her eyes falling on Takato. "If I ever want to talk, you're there."

Her sneakered feet reached the last stair, her eyes not leaving Takato once as he dusted himself off with an amiable laugh. She stood there for a moment, hands buried in her jacket's pockets, eyebrows knotted in war with herself. She glanced away, briefly, her mouth twisting up into something that looked like loathing before her eyes returned toward her friend.

"Hey, Takato?" she spoke up, causing the boy in question to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh… Yeah?"

Rika held his crimson-eyed gaze for half a moment before scowling down at the ground. She struggled visibly, chewing on her lower lip before finally shaking her head.

"Forget it. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Ahhh… Okay? Hey, are you okay?"

"Peachy, Gogglehead," she said as she departed, a finality to her tone that suggested she was done socializing. All three remaining humans plus the two respective digimon watched her go, Renamon trailing closely behind, leaping from tree to tree.

"Puhpihpihpuh?" MarineAngemon asked Kenta, who shook his head, looking somewhat confused.

"No, she didn't seem sick. Why do you ask?"

MarineAngemon returned to Rika's retreating back. "Pihpuh," he replied sagely.


	2. Chapter 2

The tablet was broken.

Takato groaned inwardly while Guilmon poked at its cracked screen. It blinked briefly with broken light scattered between the cracks on the surface before returning to darkness again.

"Um… Maybe if we had MarineAngemon look at it?" Guilmon offered. "Maybe he could heal it?"

"I don't think that's how it works, boy."

"Why not?" Guilmon turned toward Kenta and his pink, fairy partner expectantly. The tiny digimon shook his head and gave a soft _Pih. _No translation was needed to understand him. His tone said it all.

"So, what are you going to do?" Jeri asked, her eyes soft and empathic. Takato shrugged uncertainly.

"Not sure. I don't really have a lot of money and this is an old tablet anyway. It could barely handle what I was doing. Finding a replacement or even getting it fixed won't be easy."

He sighed dejectedly. _Why does everything I do go wrong? _he wondered mentally. It was the wrong thing to think. All things considered, he had a lot of good things in his life, but there were times such as now where a more childish part of him felt as though he lived under a curse; that the universe was bound and determined to keep him from rising too high above his station. To keep his head out of their clouds.

"If you need any help…" Jeri began to offer, trailing off with a meaningful smile to fill in the rest for her. Takato smiled back in spite of the dull ache he felt rising in the back of his throat.

"T-Thanks, Jeri," he croaked, trying to ignore old feelings rising up in him like a tide. "It means a lot to me. Anyway, I…uh…I'd better head down to Akihabara. Maybe I can get a deal or something."

"Mind if I come along?" Jeri asked, taking a sudden step forward and slipping an arm through his. "I'd like to catch up with you and it'd be a great chance to get a costume for you." Her smile grew, taking on a playful look. "Where Rika's concerned, you'll need my eye to help you anyway."

Takato blushed ferociously as, unbidden, the image of Rika was summoned in his mind, banishing his earlier ghosts with a painful slam of his heart in his chest. "Buh-wha…?! I… T-That's…!"

Jeri shut him down by jabbing a finger into his chest. "Takato. If you tell me that I'm being crazy, I'm…" She paused, scowled and puffed her cheeks out, and then jabbed his chest again. "Okay, I'm not sure _what _I'd do, but I won't be happy with you. I just hate seeing you do this to yourself."

"D-Do what to myself?" Takato asked evasively, though he had an idea about what Jeri was talking about.

"Don't be like that, Takato," Kenta laughed as Jeri puffed her cheeks out in annoyance, _clearly _unhappy with his question. MarineAngemon giggled and did a little cartwheel in the air. "It's pretty obvious what's going on."

"Especially with how she was holding you earlier," Jeri said, her voice tight. "If Kazu hadn't said anything…" She let out a heavy sigh, her amber-colored eyes taking on a sorrowful, distant look.

"Pihpihpih," MarineAngemon said, floating over to the girl, his eyes full of concern.

"Yeah, you're right," Kenta said in agreement. "If it wasn't Kazu, it probably would have been Terriermon."

"You guys sound like you think Rika and I…um…" The boy blushed, finding himself unable to finish that sentence. "W-Well, anyway, you're crazy."

_"You're _the crazy one if you're going to let her slip away with talk like that," Jeri said vehemently, once more jabbing a finger into Takato's chest. "I've seen the way you two look at each other!"

"You mean how she looks at me like she wants to pound me into the pavement?" Takato asked, forcing a laugh in an attempt to make a joke. It fell flat on Jeri, who simply planted her hands on her hips. Takato scratched his head, uncertain of what to say.

"I see you looking away," she said. "Why are you being like this? You weren't with…me, but now…" Her eyes softened and she began to fidget, her hands clasping around each other tightly. Seeing this gesture, Takato at once raised a comforting hand towards her.

"Jeri…" he began, only for the smaller brunette to flinch away. Pain flashed across both their eyes at this and Jeri looked up at him apologetically.

"S-Sorry!"

"No!" Takato began quickly. "It's… It's not… Don't apologize. It's all right. I…I know."

He shifted and Kenta looked back and forth between them, knowing that he was now intruding on something that was very private between them.

"Well… I guess we'd better get going," he said, adjusting his glasses and looking over at MarineAngemon. "C'mon, buddy. Let's give them some privacy."

"Huh?" Takato began. "H-Hey! You don't…"

It was too late however. Kenta was already hurrying off, waving a hand at them over his shoulder.

"See you guys on Halloween!" he called. Giving a bright laugh, MarineAngemon blew a heart bubble in their direction and flew after his partner, leaving Takato with Jeri, a blue heart floating lazily between them. Jeri watched it for a moment before stepping close to her friend, laying a hand on his shoulder. He stiffened under her touch, but did not retreat as she had done.

"I'm sorry, Jeri," Takato said softly.

"Don't be," she shook her head, giving his shoulder a soft squeeze. "It's not your fault. It's mine."

"You keep saying that, but…" Takato trailed off and his gaze shifting over at Guilmon, who presently watched them with concern. Jeri closed her eyes, and an image of news footage showing Gallantmon – Takato and Guilmon's biomerged Mega form – being piled on by a swarm of insect-like monsters came to mind, causing her to tense up. Another memory followed shortly; more news footage, this one showing Rika dangling off a rampaging train digimon, Takato having just barely caught her in time from falling to her death.

"I keep saying it because it's true," she said, her voice firm, fighting against her own fears. "And because I don't want you to be like me. I don't want you to lose Rika because you're afraid of losing her. Now, come on." She looped an arm back through his and pulled him forward. "Let's go and make you look eye-catching for Halloween!" She giggled softly. "I'm thinking maybe a vampire. Rika's been reading some stories with those lately. I think it might mean something."

"What do you think it means?" Guilmon asked, following after his partner as he allowed himself to be reluctantly dragged along. "Does Rika want Takato to drink her blood?"

Jeri squawked with sudden laughter while Takato's face drowned in crimson, his crimson eyes growing wide with horror. Seeing this, Guilmon cocked his head to one side in confusion.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"You…You've got to be doing this on purpose now," Takato stammered out, remembering Terriermon's earlier comments about Guilmon and jokes. Still clinging to him, Jeri covered her mouth, struggling to master her giggles and snorts.

"No," Guilmon shook his head, looking genuinely puzzled. "Vampires do that, right? But Impmon says girls love vampires because they drink their blood. I think." Guilmon frowned, tapping a claw against his chin in confusion. "He was saying something about penetration that didn't make sense to me."

"I think you'd be better off _not _listening to Impmon!" Jeri laughed, though with more control over herself this time. Sniffing from having teared up a bit from the shock of humor, she smirked up at Takato. "Nice to see that you're not denying how you feel about Rika this time." She gave him a scrutinizing look, standing up on her tiptoes and leaning forward, almost causing Takato to lean away from her in sudden discomfort. "You _do _like-like her, right? I'm not misreading things? And don't forget, I can tell when you're lying."

"I…" Takato hesitated, his eyes wavering around as though his surroundings held the answers to her questions before finally settling on his broken tablet. "Yeah…" he admitted. "I am. I just… I just wish…"

"Well no more 'just wishing!'" Jeri interrupted, giving his arm a hard tug. "We're making this a _reality!"_

"W-Wait! Hold on! Jeri!" Takato stumbled after her, wondering, and not for the first time, how he kept ending up in such messes like this.

_I'll bet Henry doesn't have to deal with this kind of craziness,_ he thought with a tint of jealousy.

**###**

"_Hiyaaa!" _Terriermon's voice made grand, sweeping motions as wide as they could go. Around him, fellow train passengers watched with a mixture of fascination and concern, as though they were expecting the Rookie-level digimon to suddenly wrap himself in the light of digivolution and explode in a more fearsome, powerful form. With a mischievous glint in his black eyes, he smirked, continuing to talk to the invisible opponents around him. "You want a piece of me? Watch out denizens of the digital world! Terriermon's going to kick your booty!"

"Please stop doing that," Henry said over the clacking of the train tracks, fingers thumbing along his cellphone's miniature keyboard. "You're making everyone stare at you."

"So?" Dropping his arms, Terriermon turned his dark eyes up at the teen. "Momentai! You drag me around everywhere. I doubt there's a person in Japan that _doesn't _know you're a Tamer by now."

"True…" Henry conceded reluctantly. "But do you have to draw attention to it? I can't concentrate with everyone staring at me."

Terriermon frowned. "Can't you put that thing away for even half a minute? The whole point of this costume contest is to take a break from all this work stuff you do."

"Funny. I don't recall putting in a request for time off."

"You know what I mean. Don't play dumb. It doesn't suit you."

"I _can't _just take a break, Terriermon," Henry replied tersely. "We've talked about this."

The long-eared dog-rabbit sighed.

"Not with that attitude, you won't."

Henry grimaced at that. This argument between them was a familiar one, and they danced its steps intimately now. Years ago, Terriermon and the rest of the digimon had been made to return to the digital world and the government agency of hypnos built a firewall to prevent any further breaches from that side of the dimensional divide. While Hypnos' head, Yamaki, had been apologetic to the children, whose digimon had become an important part of their lives, he hadn't wanted to risk a repeat of the devastation wrought first by the Devas and then later the D-Reaper – the latter of which nearly destroyed the digital world. Logically, Henry understood this, even if the others did not. Logically, he assumed on the surface, but beneath it lay a fear. A fear that Terriermon was gone forever.

Within that year of the digimon being gone, he began his labors, pushing himself as hard as he could to study programming further, learn about the digital world, artificial intelligence and a variety of topics that world one day allow him to either bring Terriermon home to him or go to the digital world itself to find him.

The digimon came back on their own, and for a brief time this urgency slept until the Parasimon invasion on Rika's thirteenth birthday. Public opinion on digimon, already dim, grew sour, and though things had improved somewhat since as Yamaki began pushing for a government-sponsored Tamers program, that sourness remained an undercurrent threatening to send the partner digimon back once more to the digital world.

Henry couldn't allow that. He _wouldn't. _So his urgency roared back to life even more fervently than before.

"I won't lose you again," he whispered under his breath.

"Huh?" Terriermon looked up at him. "What'd you say?"

"Nothing," Henry replied, closing up his phone and pocketing it. "Just work."

"You _really _need to momentai."

**###**

Rika wished she were old enough to drive. That she were old enough to own a motorcycle she could drive without someone else's permission so she could take it as far away as she wanted, feeling the wind whip about her while the engine growled and hummed beneath her. Not that Renamon – in her Champion form of Kyubimon – was a terrible substitute. Far from it in fact. Rather of late, she had been developing misgivings about using her as a means of getting around and going to far off places whenever she wanted to clear her head. When she wanted _silence _or, when she was frustrated enough, wanted something that roared as loud as she felt.

Renamon – bless her digicore – assured her that she had no problems with being her ride, or even 'roaring' in the manner Rika desired. _"My greatest desire is to make you happy," _she had said, and Rika believed her, yet still it smacked too close to her partner being a _thing _for her personal use. Likely, she believed, some residual guilt from her youth when she had treated Renamon in that manner, whose welfare she didn't need to care about except as a means to massage her pride. Caring was not a new concept, but puberty, with all its changes, amplified a great many things and dusted off others she thought long past for a new, closer inspection.

Still, she wasn't one to run from her problems. At least she didn't like to think so. She bore her guilt and now found herself riding Kyubimon, the now 9-tailed fox's fiery feet, aided by a speed modify card, pounding pavement as they raced beyond the city limits and out into open fields and countryside, dotted by islands of woods and brush. A desert compared to the lush park of the city, at least for now. If she kept going however…

_We can't be friends anymore._

The thought rippled across her mind. Disturbed, Rika's knees pressed slightly against Kyubimon's sides. Straight away, the kitsune veered off to the side and out into the ocean of green. She kept going a little longer to give Rika some distance from the traffic of the highway before finally coming to a stop.

"Thanks," Rika said, hopping off her partner's back and landing lithely on the ground.

"Of course," Kyubimon replied as the girl wandered on ahead a short way before planting herself on a boulder jutting out of the ground. Kyubimon padded over to her and climbed up beside her, swirling her tails about her. Rika blushed at the treatment, but smiled nonetheless.

"Babying me, Kyubimon?"

"Apologies if it seems that way," the fox digimon replied with a light chuckle. "But you looked cold after all that riding. I didn't think you'd want to get sick."

"Always the big sister," Rika smirked, leaning back against her partner, the heat from Kyubimon's golden fur seeping into her clothes, warming her. "Almost feel like I should though. At least I'd have an excuse not to go to Jeri's stupid Halloween outing."

Kyubimon lifted an eyebrow at this, but didn't as yet say anything, simply allowing the girl the time to elaborate and speak what lay on her heart. Rika adjusted her jacket, closing it tighter about her.

"Not going to tell me I'm being rude?" she asked, drawing her knees up to her chest.

"If you don't want to go, then don't," Kyubimon replied simply. "I'm sure Jeri would understand."

Rika pressed her lips together tightly. "Except… I do." She placed her chin on her knees, feeling the roughness of her jeans rubbing against it. "I do want to go, except…I just wish that I didn't."

Kyubimon thought about this for a moment, laying down on her paws.

"I see."

Rika grunted. "Of course you do. You _always _do."

"Not always," Kyubimon conceded with a mirthful smile. "But you do have a pattern of avoiding things that might make you happy."

Rika's head snapped up at that, but she bit back a snarky reply, the truth of it striking home to her. Her grip on her jacket loosened slightly, revealing the white, full-heart symbol emblazoned on her turquoise sweater.

"I do, don't I?" she smirked at the vixen, a breeze playing at the strands of fiery hair hanging by her ears. "Yeah, you know me too well. Probably a _little _too well."

"Perhaps," Kyubimon chuckled. "But that's my duty as your partner and your older sister."

"Yeah. But it makes me feel like I don't have any secrets."

"You prefer having a little mystery?" Kyubimon asked in amusement, her tone knowing. Rika felt heat flush across her body at that and scowled.

"You know me _way _too well," she said softly, closing her eyes. Falling into silence, she allowed her mind to drift. Much to her dissatisfaction, she found herself making her way back to the memory of Takato holding her. She felt her throat grow thick at recalling his scent – cinnamon mixed with warm bread – and the nervous hammering of his heart next to hers as her breasts pushed against his chest.

Her fingers tightened about her jacket, closing it about her thick, large sweater, worn to hide her figure. Takato's smiling face flitted across her vision and a sharp ache made itself known in the back of her throat.

_Happy or not, we can't be friends anymore, _she thought quietly, her face slowly disappearing behind her knees. _Not with the way things are._

A sudden gust of wind blew across her, tugging at her ponytail while, in the distance, Shinjuku watched silently.

**###**

The day was steadily turning towards night as time wore on, and Riley Ootori sipped from a cup of coffee, the caffeine warring against the exhaustion that lined her face. She waited, counting down as the hot, brown liquid did its job.

_Not fast enough, _she moaned, taking another quick swig before looking over at the man seated across from her. At 36, the first hints of grey now lined his hair, but she didn't mind this, rather enjoying the appearance of maturity that it gave him. Of course, with the way he drove himself, she suspected he would be completely grey well before he hit 45. She hoped that, once his little project, _Nyx – _the replacement for their previous government funded operation, Hypnos – kicked off, he would be able to relax a little.

Too bad he was working during their late lunch date.

_Late doesn't even begin to describe it, _she thought, glancing down at their table, noting the spread of food on his side that remained completely untouched, such was the level of his focus.

"You're going to make me ruin my figure if you don't eat your food on your own," she said, stabbing her chopsticks in his direction. Yamaki grunted.

"It can be packed for later," he replied.

"Yes, and then you'll end up forgetting it. Just like you forgot that this was supposed to be about pleasure instead of business." She paused before adding, "For a change."

Yamaki's eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, shifted, turning in her direction, having caught the annoyed tone to her voice. The tablet he held that contained his present workload beeped and shut off. He set it on the table and took up his chopsticks.

"Sorry," he said, digging into his meal for the first time, though it was likely long cold by now.

"Don't be," Riley replied, feeling bad now. "I know you're trying to get Hypnos' replacement ready on time."

"Hypnos and Nyx have nothing to do with it. Rather…the kids."

Riley felt herself smile at that.

"I love that you have a soft spot for them even after all these years."

"Getting Nyx ready to replace Hypnos is the only way that parliament will allow the Tamers to work for us. They're not too keen on the notion of having _children _acting like soldiers or law enforcement. Especially without some kind of training and oversight." He pushed his sunglasses up onto his face. "Even if they're already a couple years away from adulthood."

"I know," Riley nodded, remembering the meetings she had gone too with him. "But they are battle-hardened veterans and are used to working with us. You'd think the government would cut them a little slack since their experience is a little out of the ordinary, all things considered."

"And here I thought you didn't want to talk about work."

Riley gave him a playful smirk and with her chopsticks, snatched a pickled ume off his plate, pointing it at him.

"Quite right, Mr. Boss Man. Now, say 'Ahhh.'"

For a wonder, a light blush bloomed into view on the stone-faced man's features and he began to look uncomfortable. To Riley's eyes, the years all but melted away from his face and he looked once more like the man she had fallen in love with all those years ago.

"Riley… This is…inappropriate."

"I think we passed some professional boundaries a long time ago. Now come on. I could use the practice for when we have our first kid, so open wide."

Her teasing was cut short by the sound of Yamaki's cellphone blaring, causing her to curse it for interrupting her fun. Without missing a beat – perhaps grateful for the distraction – Yamaki whipped it out and flipped it open.

"Yamaki," he said tersely, and Riley's expression flattened upon hearing the sound of relief in his voice. Still, she waited, getting the distinct feeling that all was not well at Nyx.

It rarely was where its job was concerned.

"Understood," Yamaki nodded. "Send out the word to our associates and continue monitoring the situation. We'll be there shortly."

"Trouble?" Riley asked.

"Trouble," came the expected response as Yamaki snapped his phone shut.

**###**

"I don't know about this, Jeri…"

Jeri giggled at Takato's uncertainty, finding it a cute contrast to the smart, confident cut his costume gave him. In the mirror, he wore a traditional vampire getup; a Victorian era suit with a black cape and a red vest. His face was powdered to a pale-color that suited his red-colored eyes surprisingly well, but his hair remained as it always did; shaggy and a bit on the untamed side. She tried to imagine him with it slicked back and neatly smooth like Dracula appeared on TV, but she quickly dismissed the idea. There was such a thing as too much of a good thing.

"Why? You look good," Jeri smiled. "Besides, what girl doesn't like a well-dressed boy?" She hummed thoughtfully, tapping her chin. "I wonder if Rika would like it if you wore more button shirts?"

"Maybe it's the ties she likes better," Takato said with a slight frown, remembering a time when she saw her fiddling with Henry's tie when he revealed he was being accepted into a high level prep school that would help him get ready for Stanford University, showing him the _proper _method of fixing it up so he wouldn't embarrass himself. He felt a spark of jealousy and, though small and fleeting, he hated himself for feeling that way.

_They're my best friends, _he berated himself mentally.

"Could be," Jeri continued, stepping back and admiring her handiwork. "We can experiment if you want. Small steps though, right? Change too many things about yourself and you might get the _opposite _of what you want. Rika likes you after all. It'd be bad if you stopped being you."

"I…don't know why she _would _like me," he scowled, tugging at the outfit and stepping away from the mirror. "Why are you so sure she does anyway? I'm not…" He croaked and grimaced before continuing. "I'm not…worthy of her."

Jeri pouted angrily at him. "Isn't that for _her _to decide?" she asked, planting her hands on her hips. "Besides, like I said, I've seen the way she looks at you. Maybe you didn't notice, but she spends an awful lot of time just being next to you. She's probably just shy."

"Huh?" Takato turned and looked at Jeri in surprise. "What do you mean? Rika? Shy? That doesn't sound like her."

"Well… Maybe _shy _isn't the right word," Jeri amended. "Maybe awkward. You'd be her first crush I think and…well, I remember how I felt after all that growing up I did. I felt like everyone was watching me and…you know how Rika can be."

"She doesn't like being gawked at," Takato said softly, remembering how well she took to cameras, owing in part to her distaste of her mother's modeling career and how she had nearly been forced into it when she was young.

"Yep!" Jeri nodded, taking out her phone and flipping it open. "Speaking of which…say cheese!"

"Hah?"

There came a click and Takato blanched as his picture was taken. Giggling to herself in satisfaction, she tapped a few buttons and sent the picture off.

"I'm sure Rika will _love _this and… Oh!" Her phone buzzed suddenly, the screen lighting up with a message from Rika. "That was fast!"

Clicking on the message, she soon pouted. "Oh… She's just wondering if you're with me." Her amber eyes flickered over to Takato in a scolding manner. "She got a call from your parents saying Yamaki called them and that you weren't home."

Her phone buzzed again and another message came in. "Oh! Never mind, she just saw the picture. She knows where we are and she's on her way now. She says, _"Go outside and stay put."_

Takato heaved a heavy sigh, as though the prospect of being picked up by Rika was as daunting a task as tackling a wild digimon.

"Well… This sure has been a blast," he said with a rueful laugh, heading for the changing room. "Um… Thanks, Jeri. Really, I mean it. You didn't have to do this."

"Don't worry about it," the small girl beamed, and not for the first time did Takato remember why he had fallen in love with her so long ago. "It's been good talking to you again about something other than school and homework for a change." Lifting a fist, she pumped it in the air. "Now get out there and sweep Rika off her feet!"

_With my luck, I'm pretty sure it'll be the exact opposite, _Takato thought mentally, stepping into the changing room and closing the door behind him.


End file.
